France won their second Group I match at the 2026 World Cup by beating Iraq 3-0 in Philadelphia on June 22, securing their place in the last 32 of the tournament [1, 2, 3, 4]. The match was delayed just under two hours at halftime due to severe thunderstorms, challenging players to stay focused, Kylian Mbappe said: "It was a very long evening. In terms of staying switched on emotionally it was very difficult because we had to remain focused in the dressing room for almost two hours" [3, 4, 5].
Mbappe scored twice during the match, marking his 100th international appearance and tying Miroslav Klose’s pre-tournament World Cup goals record with 16 career goals. After the game, France coach Didier Deschamps said, "Well, records are there to be broken. And now he has a symbolic figure. He has 100 caps. He's always scored goals. He will score more goals" [1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 5]. Mbappe’s four goals in this World Cup put him one behind Lionel Messi, who set a new all-time World Cup scoring record with 18 goals just two days earlier on June 20 [3, 4, 5].
Ousmane Dembele scored France's third goal after halftime, making a strong contribution after criticism for his performance in France’s opening match against Senegal, which France won 3-1 with Mbappe also scoring twice [2, 3, 4, 6]. France had started Group I by beating Senegal, while Iraq lost their opening match 4-1 to Norway [7, 1, 8]. Iraq remained mathematically alive for qualification via one of the eight third-place spots, according to their coach Graham Arnold, who said, "For me now, it's all about Senegal. With ... eight third-placed teams going through. You know, we've still got a chance" [8, 4, 9]. Iraq’s forward Aymen Hussein was injured and replaced during the match [3, 4].
French defenders like William Saliba and Lucas Digne had warned about the difficulty of the match, with Saliba noting, "They (Iraq) have a good team and it will not be easy even if people think it might be," and Digne calling it "a very intense match" that would be "very physical" [7]. Iraq coach Arnold echoed a positive outlook, saying, "I've always been a coach who goes out expecting to win a game, not trying not to lose" [8].
France coach Didier Deschamps kept a stable lineup with minor tweaks for the match to maintain team cohesion [1]. Over 68,000 fans attended the game in Philadelphia [5]. France will face Norway again on June 27 for the top spot in Group I after both teams won their first two matches [3, 4].
